1980's developed current footing for Tech athletics

Tech athletics, like all NCAA Division-I A programs, require more attention, help and funding to keep programs competitive in college sports. Alumni boosters like Larry Sprayberry and Jim Bell are a big help to this cause. Bell graduated from Tech in 1953 with a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, while Sprayberry got out in 1971 with a B.S. in Industrial Management

"There were a bunch of us running around working our hearts out, and our heads off as well as other parts of the anatomy. [Sprayberry] was right there with me and he could walk up to me anywhere at any time and ask me to do something and I would do it. That's what we developed. He's just an alumnus that loves Yellow Jacket football and Georgia Tech," former Head Coach Bill Curry said in an interview.

Behind the scenes in the early 1980s, Sprayberry and Bell helped a dismal Tech program recover from being one of the worst in division I. It was very difficult to recruit for Tech football because the program was in such poor condition.

"There was nothing. The weight room was under the old north stands. The equipment was covered with plastic sheets, and the wind would blow through there. It looked pathetic," Bell said.

That was just one example of how bad the facilities were. Larry Sprayberry recalled another instance where the facilities caused problems with recruiting.

"I'll never forget when I brought a top running back from North Springs High School to the training room under the east stands. There were dirt floors, and he noticed it," Sprayberry said.

In 1981, Homer Rice was hired as the director of Athletics and was in charge of turning things around.

"Homer was a miracle worker. We were in a vacuum. I don't believe most Tech fans realized how low we were. Homer came along and said, in a quiet and confident way, 'we can do it,'" Bell said.

While Rice did much of the fundraising to help bring Tech's facilties up through the GTAA, alumni like Bell and Sprayberry helped to raise funds through local clubs, such as the North Metro Club and the Yellow Jacket club. These organizations were put together by alumni in and around the city of Atlanta to raise funds for Tech athletics.

"We needed a marketing plea to get people to come out and watch Tech football," Bell said. "The Yellow Jacket club was formed off campus by several people. Kim King, Randy Carroll, Taz Anderson, myself, Turner Womack, Steve Wisner and Joe Delaney were the only members. We went to work, and we sold jackets to people. On these jackets, we would also sell emblems. We negotiated with the school to get members parking privileges at the Coliseum. We would hold tailgate parties there before games. We also had buses that went to away games from there."

In the days when alumni could still help with recruiting, Sprayberry and Bell, among others, would give tours to recruits and hold breakfasts and lunches for prospective student-athletes with their families. Since 1987 when the NCAA outlawed any and all contact with recruits by alumni, the athletic association has been solely responsible for the recruitment of football players.

In those visits from recruiting athletes to Tech, Sprayberry and Bell preached Homer Rice's concept of the "total person."

"[The total person concept] set the precedent for a student-athlete going through college to not only become a football player and a scholar, but also take care of his life and do the right things," Sprayberry said.

When Rice arrived, everyone involved with the program had to find ways other than facilities to generate interest.

"The theme that Bill Curry and Homer Rice had was that you can do things right, sell the positive things at Tech and not the negative things, like the facilities or the difficulties of class," Sprayberry said.

"You could challenge recruits and tell that we will get the best out of you. Not only will you get a good job, but also we will make you the best that you can be. Even with all the negative things we had going, we were able to sell it."

This ideal spread near and far, drawing the attention of former congressman, mayor of Atlanta, and U.N. ambassador Andrew Young.

"On game days, Andrew Young would come [to Tech], and was a real asset for us. He bought into the Tech program because he truly believed that if a young man signed with Tech that he would have a chance to earn a degree that would mean something," Bell said.

All of the people involved with the program at that time were successful and able to show recruits that they would have the same opportunities at Tech. With their combined efforts, Tech was able to generate more funding for all of the athletic programs.